She is your daughter y'know
by MurtaghArcturus
Summary: 19 years later. Hermione faces her boggart in front of her two children.


"Mum! I think there's something in the cabinet down here!"

Hugo's yell traveled up the stairs and into Hermione's office. "Coming darling!" She said, as she shuffled the papers into a neat pile on her desk.

Walking down the stairs and into the library, she saw Hugo standing in front of one of the standing closets, the doors banging and shaking erratically as if something were trying to get out from the inside. Hermione put her hands on her hips, shaking her head.

"What's the matter?" said Rose running into the room and looking at Hugo.

Hermione looked at her daughter and smirked. "I'm sure you could figure it out."

Rose looked at the cabinet; her eyebrows pulled together, and smiled a big toothy grin as she realized what was causing the problem. "That's a boggart! We learned about them in third year."

"Yes…" Hermione smiled at her daughter, "and thankfully this is only the second time we've had one since you two were little."

Both Hugo and Rose nodded, staring at the shaking closet. Hermione took out her wand.

"Do you want me to help, mum?" asked Rose hopefully.

"That's alright, you two can go start dinner before your father gets home, okay? This'll only take a few minutes."

"But muuum!" said a dismayed Hugo, "I want to watch!"

Hermione, starting to pull her hair into a tight knot, looked at him. "Darling, you're going to be learning about them in a few months yourself. Boggarts take the appearance of whatever frightens a person most… and I don't want you to get scared if it jumps out and takes the shape of your fear." The incredulous look on her sons face suggested she try another approach. "I can handle a lone boggart on my own; I just don't want you to have to see it before you're prepared for it."

Rose chuckled and put her hand on her brother's shoulder. "C'mon Hugh, it's only a boggart. It's not like they're terribly uncommon," she said as she turned him around.

They walked out of the room and down the hall, Hugo mumbling under his breath about not being five years old and making faces at the idea of getting scared.

Hermione smirked and rolled up her sleeves. Taking out her wand, she listened to be sure that her children were in the kitchen and not peeking around any corners, and she flicked it at the cabinets handle.

The door slowly swung open with an ominous creak, its dark interior masking everything. Hermione raised her wand, ready to say the spell.

A high heeled boot stepped out, heel first and then the toe with a snap, the sound reverberating off the hardwood floors. A woman swathed in all black, her robes ripped and damaged, sauntered out. With her wand tip raised to her lips- pulled back in a malicious smile- she tipped her head to the side, letting her mess of curly dark hair flip over her shoulder. Her eyes travelling appraisingly up and down Hermione.

Hermione's entire body had frozen in terror. It felt as if she were being choked, her airways blocked with a pending scream. Her heart felt as if it were about to rupture out of her chest.

"You look well my dear," Bellatrix cackled as she took a tantalizing step forward, taunting.

Hermione felt her knees weaken, her vision starting to become clouded by dark spots. She struggled for breath as Bellatrix took another step towards her.

"What's the matter, pretty? It looks like you've seen a ghost."

Hermione took a step back, unable to do anything else.

"Answer me you filthy Mudblood!"

She shuddered at the name, her wand dropping to the floor and her knees buckling. Her hand strayed to the scar on her arm, while her eyes stayed fixed, terrified, on the woman sneering at her.

There was a commotion in the kitchen as Rose ran to the alarming name, followed closely behind by Hugo. "Mum?!"

Bellatrix's loud cackle filled the library as she pointed her wand at Hermione. "Cruci-"

"Riddikulus!" cried Rose as she ran into the room.

The boggart quickly turned into Professor Trelawney looking around, dazed, and then turned to smoke.

"Mum! Mum are you alright?" asked an alarmed looking Hugo, moving quickly to crouch beside his mother. When he tried to wrap his arms around her shoulders she shuddered, her entire body quaking. He quickly pulled back, looking panicked. "Rose?!"

Rose was standing, staring at her mother in deep in thought. "Hugh, I need you to go start some tea. Right now." Hugo nodded, quickly getting up and running into the kitchen.

Rose slowly moved to crouch down in front of her mother, keeping her distance and not touching her. "Mum, I need you to breathe."

Hermione took a shaky breath, trying to calm herself. She tried to speak, to reassure her daughter, but when she opened her mouth only a light squeaking noise escaped. She took a few breaths and tried again with more success.

"I'm okay… I'm fine," she mumbled, barely audible.

"Okay…" Rose extended her hand cautiously, "let's go have some tea."

Hermione took her hand and nodded her head quickly, not meeting her daughter's eyes. "M'kay,"

* * *

Ron stumbled in, cursing himself. "Bloody floo," he muttered. "Hermione! Rosie, Hugh!"

"In here dad!" replied Rose from the kitchen. He walked down the hallway, asking as he went, "where's your moth- Hermione?!"

He quickly ran to her side, enveloping her into a tight hug. After a few seconds he pulled back, looking at her face. She was pale, her breathing shallow, and her eyes, which were slightly glazed, were having a hard time meeting his. "What happened?" he asked, never looking away from her.

"There was a boggart… a-a woman… I don't know who…" Hugo quickly responded, looking back and forth between him and his mother.

Rose leaned in, whispering into her father's ear, her hand covering her mouths movements from her mother, "I think it was that awful woman… the one wh-who hurt her. During the war." Ron snapped his eyes to his daughters in alarm, "the one who gave her the scar."

Hermione shuddered at this, and Ron quickly wrapped his arms around her again, stroking her back and shaking his head. "I'm so sorry love. She's gone… she's dead. Shh." She took a shaky breath, burrowing into Ron's shoulder. He kissed the side of her head.

Rose looked to her father, who gestured with his head towards the door. He smiled weakly at her when she grabbed her brother and dragged him out.

At the departure of her children, Hermione quickly dissolved into hysterical sobs, holding onto her husband's shirt like it was her lifeline. "I-I'm sorry!" she cried, "sh-she just…"

"Shh, shh, it's alright. I'm here. She's dead. She's gone."

It took a few minutes, but her cries eventually turned into quiet sniffles and shaky breaths as she composed herself. "I'm sorry," she said again, "I thought I was alright… I mean, the nightmares stopped _ages_ ago… I don't know what happened."

Ron pulled back to look at her, using his thumbs to wipe away the tears that escape from her eyes. "Sweetheart, you have nothing to worry about. It's alright."

She laughed shakily, "It was Rose who got rid of her. She was fantastic."

Ron grinned shaking his head, "Of course she was, she is _your_ daughter y'know." Ron laughed as Hermione weakly smacked his chest. "Maybe you should wait for me the next time we have a bloody boggart in the house," he laughed harder as Hermione smacked him again.

"Prat," she said, but she was smiling. He winked at her.

* * *

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